


Tony Stark's Council of Ladies

by DraconianDevil



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Arguing, Cute, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-25
Updated: 2018-08-25
Packaged: 2019-07-02 08:46:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,483
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15793089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DraconianDevil/pseuds/DraconianDevil
Summary: Tony gathers a special council of the women in his life to help him with a decision: whether or not to date Peter Parker. Things get real.





	Tony Stark's Council of Ladies

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, this is because of Peter's "the physics is theoretical but the fun is real" t-shirt. This is my first Starker fix, haha. 
> 
> And OMG THREE DIGIT KUDOS?  
> (in sheldon cooper voice): Air’s getting pretty thin up here.
> 
> Thank you all!

  
                   Pepper Potts was a very busy woman and was thus distracted when she entered Tony’s suite at the top of what, in a few months, would no longer be Avengers Tower. Running her ex-boyfriend’s technological empire could do that. So when she finally looked up from her phone to ask Tony why he had asked her to go there, she was most surprised to find three other women there, two of them wanted fugitives. Tony was nowhere in sight.

  
                  In lieu of stunned silence, she chose to say “Hello, and what are you all doing here?”

  
                  Natasha, who was lounging on an empty packing crate was the first to speak. “Stark told me that this was Avengers related. Emergency of some kind.”

  
                  Sharon cast a wary but curious glance at Natasha, obviously ill at ease around a woman who was a legend in the field of espionage and was now considered a national threat. “He told me the same. Had me flown here by jet from Langley.” Pepper noted that while Natasha was discreetly armed (actually, Natasha did not seem at all armed, but the woman would never be caught dead without any weapons), Sharon had a holstered gun inside her light jacket.

  
                 Pepper turned to the last person in the room. “And what about you Ms Maximoff? What inventive lie did Tony tell you to get you down here?” She paused to consider the panoramic view of New York before amending, “Up here.”

  
               Wanda shrugged, dressed in deep burgundy leathers and casually sipping a mimosa, sitting atop the recently emptied bar. “None, actually. He told me he needed my advice concerning a very personal and awkward matter that would probably cause him some emotional anguish and that I could not only watch but participate.” She smiled, “I was game.”

  
               “Way to let things go,” murmured Natasha.

  
                “He told me this was a business meeting,” Pepper broke in before Wanda could say or do anything hostile.

  
               “It is,” called Tony’s voice. He emerged from his bedroom on the second level of the suite, walking barefoot down the wide staircase, dressed in a tight shirt and track pants. The arc reactor on his chest glowed dimly through the black fabric of the shirt.

  
               “Good afternoon, Tony,” Pepper said drily, “Some questions I’d like you to answer: Why are the four of us here? Have you gone nuts by inviting two fugitives into, and might I stress, a _government supported and surveillanced_ skyscraper? And where did she get a mimosa?”

  
                Tony looked at her with as much innocence as he could muster before taking a seat next to Natasha on the crate. “First of all, if I could hack into a SHIELD helicarrier with a button, I can and have disabled all non-me surveillance equipment in and around this tower, so we’re fine. Secondly, the government might be our biggest backers, but I think we do well with the licensed Iron Man merch we’ve been selling.” He then pointed to a pair of double doors on the other side of the room. “And the mimosa came from the caterers in that room.”

  
              “Great, I’m starving,” said Natasha as she stood up and strode to the doors Tony had just pointed to. Her weight had apparently been the only thing keeping the crate balanced and Tony sprawled on the floor.

  
              Wanda cackled like…well, a witch and polished off her mimosa. Sharon made no move to help, but at least she didn’t laugh either. Pepper went to Tony and helped him up. “I’m not kidding Tony. Why are we here?”

  
               Natasha re-entered the room with a plate loaded with miniature versions of breakfast foods. “She’s right Stark. It took me ten minutes to get past all the security at the airport. They’re getting smarter.”

  
               Tony took a deep breath and sat on the steps of the wide staircase. “I need you all to advise me on a personal romantic decision. Hence, I have assembled Tony Stark’s Council of Ladies,” he announced grandly, spreading his arms wide to indicate the four mystified women.

  
              “‘Council of Ladies?’” Natasha repeated, frowning.

  
              “It’s from TV or Netflix or wherever it is people watch shows now,” Tony explained.

  
               Pepper took a deep breath of her own and sat down next to him. “This really wasn’t the most tactful move, you know.”

  
               “I know,” Tony said, “but I’ve always trusted your opinions and I’m not letting a small tiff-”

  
               “Dating for two years and breaking up because you found out you were gay,” Pepper murmured.

  
                “A SMALL tiff change that,” Tony continued, “Was it really hard for you to let me finish that sentence?”

  
                 “If it was a romantic problem, why did you ask me here?” Natasha asked, waving a fork with a mini waffle speared on it.

  
                  “I needed the opinion of a cold-blooded hatchet woman unclouded by emotions,” Tony answered. Natasha just nodded thoughtfully and took a bite of the mini waffle.

  
                  “And what about me?” Sharon said patiently, thought her fingers briefly stroked the handle of her gun.

  
                  “As my ex-boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend, you can successfully emulate what dear old Cap would say. Plus, you actually have human emotions, unlike Natasha.”

  
                  “Ex-girlfriend?” Pepper interjected, “When did that happen? I thought you two were still seeing each other?”

  
                   Sharon blushed. “We mutually called it off when it became apparent that he preferred men with bionic arms.”

  
                   Wanda nodded and smiled. “And they’re very happy together.”

  
                  “Thanks for the update,” said Sharon, looking daggers at the Sokovian.

  
                  “Oh, so it was OK to invite _me_ to your romantic problem summit but not Rogers? Why isn’t he here to _help_?” Pepper burst, bitterly. Tony could be such an ass sometimes.

  
                   “Well, Steve is really…well, relatively, new to this whole man-on-man thing and I don’t think he would be helpful.” Tony chuckled. “One of the reasons we broke up was because he was so naïve about gay stuff.”

  
                   “Not anymore,” Wanda said, quite unhelpfully.

  
                   “Before you can ask,” Tony said, addressing Wanda, “you’re here because I believe your loathing of me will yield pure, honest answers.”

  
                  “And what is the romantic problem, Tony?” Pepper asked, already exhausted.

  
                  “I want to date Peter Parker,” Tony stated in a matter-of-fact voice.

  
                  “You mean the Spider-Boy?” Wanda had a look of confusion on her face as she posed the question.

  
                  “Man,” Tony corrected, hotly, “It’s Spider- _Man_.”

  
                   “But he’s not a man, Tony!” Pepper shouted. “He’s a boy! A _seventeen_ year old boy! Have you any idea how bad that will look?”

  
                   Sharon’s face had immediately gone grave when Pepper mentioned Peter’s age. “Mr Stark, if you have done anything remotely sexual with a minor, no amount of corporate merchandising or wealth will stop me from finding out the truth and whether or not you should be in jail.”

  
                  Natasha had remained quiet, processing this as she ate the last mini eggs benedict on her plate.

  
                  Tony held up both hands. “Nothing sexual has happened yet, so please, one at a time.” He pointed at Sharon first.

  
                  Sharon nodded, slightly, very slightly, mollified by Tony’s last statement. “Mr Stark, you and I both know that if Cap- Steve found out about this, he would punch you in the face. As would I. But since nothing sexual has happened yet, from a legal stand point, you are still safe.” Sharon crossed her arms, lips pursed. “But until that boy is eighteen, you cannot, must not, have anything to do with him sexually.”

  
                 “What about romantically?” Tony suggested.

  
                 Sharon glared at him, but said, “Romance is not covered by the law. Sex is.”

  
                 Tony nodded, before turning to Wanda. “You’re up.”

  
                Wanda toyed with the champagne flute in her hand before looking at Stark. “In Sokovia, the age of majority is sixteen, so I do not know if you think your kids are stupider than ours when it comes to sex. Who even comes up with these ages? If Spider-boy was Sokovian, this would not be an issue. I see no problem in you dating him.”

  
               "Spoken like a true law-breaker,” Sharon said flatly.

  
               “But,” Wanda carried on as if Sharon had not spoken, “young boys are so often confused about what they feel. Or who it is they feel these things for. Does he truly like you or is he just experimenting?” Wanda said the last word with distaste. Pepper had known what HYDRA had done to Wanda and her sibling. They might have consented to the experiments, but it did not mean they had enjoyed it.

  
               “That was actually helpful. Thanks, Wicked Witch of the East Bloc,” Tony said, eyeing Wanda with thoughtfulness.

  
                “I don’t get you, Stark,” Natasha spoke with an air of impatience. “Dumping Potts because you were gay? Totally understandable.” (“Thanks for that,” Pepper muttered angrily) “But Jesus, your last boyfriend was decades older than you and now you want to date someone decades younger than you. Can’t you find a middle ground, Jeez?”

  
               “How does that help me?” Tony retorted angrily. He stood and began to pace the length of the room.

  
                “It doesn’t,” Natasha snapped. “You ask us for advice, but in the end, will you even take it? Have you already thrown away everything you’ve worked for on the off chance that dating jail-bait will be the key to your romantic happiness? Personally, I think it would be hard for you to defend the Earth while you are on a predator watch-list and behind bars for molestation. It’s not worth it. It almost never is.”

  
                “It’s working pretty well for Captain Rogers,” Wanda said, clearly pot-stirring. Or cauldron-stirring. “Breaking the law for love, I mean, not molestation,” she clarified.

  
                “Yeah,” Sharon sniffed, “He’s blacklisted in every country in NATO and he and his boyfriend are on every international watch-list. Sounds peachy.”

  
                 “Yeah, you sound like you’ve moved on,” Natasha chuckled.

  
                  “I have,” Sharon snapped, “but I just think he could have handled it better so he and his boyfriend don’t have to hide from every government agency. He’s the best soldier we had, and we need him on our side.”

  
                  “Can you all please leave?” Pepper interrupted. “I need to speak to Tony in private.”

  
                  They all filed out quietly. Sharon shot a warning glance at Tony. Wanda and Natasha both just stalked out, already planning how to evade police and other law enforcement personnel on their way out of the country.

                  “Am I gonna get a talking-to now?” Tony chuckled, though his voice was tense.

  
                  Pepper sighed before patting the step she was sitting on. Tony obliged, stopping his pacing and sitting down. “Which one do you want to hear first, my thoughts as Pepper Potts, Chief Operating Officer of Stark Industries or as Pepper Potts, trusted friend and ex-girlfriend?”

  
                “Business first, I should think,” Tony acceded.

  
                 “Okay. It’s a horrible idea. If word gets out that you, CEO of Stark Industries, were dating a minor, our investors would get cagey, maybe even call for your resignation from the company. Not to mention legal fees if ever... _when_ Peter’s aunt decides to sue. And the ensuing media blitz and controversy would kill our image and consequently Iron Man’s. We could lose millions, maybe more if our stock plummets because of it. As COO of Stark Industries, I advise you to not pursue Peter. It will cost us.”

  
                 Pepper stopped for breath and briefly closed her eyes, marshalling her thoughts. She felt Tony take her hands into his own and squeeze lightly.

  
                 “And what do you think, as my friend?”

  
                 Pepper opened her eyes and looked directly at Tony. “I still think it’s a terrible idea.”

  
                 “But why this time?” Tony whispered.

  
                 Pepper shook her head. “Tony, I think you know why. He’s a child. Not matter how mature seventeen year olds seem, they’re just kids. Also, illegal.” Tony made to speak, but Pepper motioned him to stay silent. “I’m not going to question whether or not he is sure he’s into men. That’s not my place. But Tony, it’s already a huge scandal when a minor dates someone older than them. Imagine what the backlash would be for Peter if it got out that he’s dating _Iron Man_. People will start probing into his life, asking questions. His alter-ego will get exposed, for sure.”

  
                 Tony was silent for a while. “Well, you wrapped that up in a neat little bow, didn’t you?” he grumbled.

  
                 “Do you love him?” Pepper asked. It was better to get this over with.

  
                 Tony gave the tiniest of nods. Then he looked out at the Manhattan skyline. “I do.”

  
                 “Then you can wait for a year. If you really want to be with him, just wait a year. That’s all you need to do. The media would still crucify you, but at least the law can’t.”

  
                 She stood up and checked her phone. In the ten minutes that this agonizing ordeal had taken place, fifty eight e-mails, three phone calls and four failed video chats had piled up. She looked up again to say good bye to Tony, but he was already going back into the room he had stepped out of. Pepper thanked and sent the caterers home before she showed herself out.

 

 

  
                   Tony pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes .He collapsed unto the rumpled bed that occupied the middle of the room. An entertainment centre he had personally made and upgraded crowded one side of the room. They were probably the only furniture left in the top of the tower. He breathed out heavily, collating all the advice he had just received.

  
                  “You love me?”

                  Peter’s voice was quiet, timid. Tony opened his eyes and saw that the young man was clinging to the ceiling of the room, still dressed in the oversized T-shirt and pyjama bottoms he had borrowed that morning. They locked eyes.

  
                 “Yes, I do.”

  
                 Peter smiled. Tony felt his heart flutter (either that, or his arc reactor malfunctioned for a moment, which would be bad).

  
                 “I love you, too, Mr Stark.”

  
                “Come down here, kid,” Tony said, smiling as well. “You’re giving me a neck cramp.”

  
                 Peter dropped from the ceiling and landed not-so-gently on top of Tony, who grunted at the weight. The older man buried his face in the crook of Peter’s neck, almost by reflex. Natasha was right: he and Peter had been seeing each other for the better part of two months now, always at Avengers Tower under strictest secrecy. Although he had been truthful about there being no sexual activity between him and Peter. Not yet. And not that it was easy to dissuade himself and the boy from going further.

  
                “We’re gonna have to stick with cuddling ‘til you turn eighteen, kid,” he whispered.

  
                Peter just chuckled and nuzzled closer to Tony. “I’m cool with that. I’m awesome at cuddling.”

  
                Tony laughed and kissed Peter’s cheek. “The best.”

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry if there are any timeline inconsistencies, but then again the timeline of MCU is pretty wonky. But this is set immediately after the events of Spider-Man: Homecoming. Yes, I know that canonically Peter is fifteen in that film, but I made him a little older. I don’t know what the age of consent is in New York State (I’m not American) but I know that federally, its 18. Please comment if any of the legal babble I had Sharon spout was wrong. Thanks for reading!
> 
> Please check out my new and darker Starker (wow that rhymed) fic, inspired by Big Little Lies  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/15848904


End file.
